About
These days, families come in all forms - single dads, double moms, sperm donors, egg donors, one-night-stand donors... It's 2012 and anything goes. Bryan and David are a Los Angeles couple, and they have it all. Well, almost. With successful careers and a committed, loving partnership, there is one thing that this couple is missing: a baby. And just when they think the stars will never align, enter Goldie, an extraordinary young woman with a checkered past. A Midwestern waitress and single mother looking to escape her dead-end life and small-minded grandmother, Goldie decides to change everything and move to L.A. with her precocious eight-year-old daughter. Desperate and broke - but also fertile - Goldie quickly becomes the guys' surrogate and quite possibly the girl of their dreams. Surrogate mother, surrogate family.
Ryan Murphy serves as creator/executive producer and director along with creator/executive producer Ali Adler and executive producer Dante Di Loreto.
"The New Normal" is produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Ryan Murphy Productions.
Today's Episode8. Season1
“Unplugged” is things back to usual on The New Normal, returning with its glaring problems now in full force.
David, Bryan, Shania and Goldie come to the realization that they spend too much time looking at screens and decide to pretend like it is 1799 for the day.
In the end, Bryan and David decide they should try to go technology-free every once in a while for their child, but then seconds later are checking their phones and texting each other while in the same bed. The lesson learned? Nothing, except for maybe an even greater dependence on the technology the show spend half an hour pointing out is a distraction.
Characters
David
David Bartholomew Sawyer is a main character on the TV show The New Normal and the husband of Bryan Collins. He is the biological father of their child. He is also a gynecologist.He is portrayed by Justin Bartha.
David is first seen watching a football game, when Bryan tells him that he wants to have a baby. At first David doesn't know if they're ready because they wont be a normal family, but after they see a bunch of abnormal families in the park, Bryan explains to David that they are "The New Normal". They then find a woman to be the egg donor, but get blackmailed by their surrogate, Melissa, who turns out not to be pregnant. They later decide to choose Goldie as their new surrogate and Bryan lets David be the biological father. As they go to implant the embryo in Goldie, David starts questioning his ability to be a father. However, Goldie re-assures him. In the end he and Bryan buy her a lawyer suit and wait to see if she's pregnant.
Bryan
Tony-nominated actor Andrew Rannells stars as Bryan, a man who seems to have it all in Ryan Murphy's "The New Normal," but when he comes face-to-face with his future, he realizes that there is one thing missing from his life: a baby. Later on he is seen telling his partner, David, that he wants to have a baby. At first, David doesn't know if they're ready because they wont be a normal family, but after they see a bunch of abnormal families in the park, Bryan explains to David that they are "The New Normal". Garry from Expanding Families comes over, but when he asks who will be the biological father they both say it will be them. After they then find a woman to be the egg donor, Goldie, who Bryan says he's fond of. Bryan then tells David that he can be the biological father. In the end, he and David buy Goldie a lawyer suit.
Goldie
Goldie is a single mother who recently moved from Ohio to California with her daughter Shania. She had Shania when she was 15 and calls her "the best accident ever." Goldie wants to study to be a lawyer. She is doing the surrogacy for the money, which she plans to use to go to law school. As a baby, her mother ran away leaving her with her grandmother. She is 24 years old. Jane (Goldie's grandmother) had Goldie's mother when she was 16.
She tells her daughter about her dream about becoming a lawyer, but she doesn't have any money, so she decides to become a surrogate - she asks for a gay couple, because of what her grandmother said. She meets with Bryan and David and is immediately ready to do the operation.
Jane is the grandmother of Goldie and great-grandmother of Shania . It is found out in Pilot that her husband was secretly homosexual. She is offensive most notably towards African-Americans and Gays. She had Goldie's mother when she was 16. She is 56 years old in the series.
She is the uptight and slightly offensive grandmother of Goldie Clemmons. She follows her and her daughter to LA without their knowledge or permission.
Shania is the ten year-old daughter of Goldie.
Rocky is the assistant of Bryan Collins.
Sneak: Secretly doing something, in order to avoid others’ notice.
Aggro: Aggro is probably originally derived from the English words "aggravation" or "aggression", means being enraged.
Bleeping: There are certain words that you cannot say on TV. When someone says one of these words, there is often a bleep sound (a high shrill sound) that covers it up. Goldie's little girl Shania is too polite to say a swear word, so she actually says "bleep" to replace the swear word that she is thinking. Notice how the word bleep is conjugated and -ing is added. She isn't just using bleep to block out the sound of the swear word. She uses "bleep" like it is an actual verb. Ex. Get that bleeping dog out of here!
Exhilarating: An extremely happy and excited feeling.
Reek: To have a really strong and unpleasant smell of something. Can often refer to body odor.
Doughy: Looks very unhealthily pale. (Like bread dough) Usually use to describe a sick, bloodless face.
Pavlovian: Indicate a theory that when the same stimulation happen would cause an automatic reaction. It’s relating to the work of Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), the Russian physiologist.
Choking: To have difficulty in breathing, swallowing, or speaking.
Estate: A landed property.
Porn mongers: A trader who specially sells products related to pornography which stimulate sexual desire.
Flyer: Advertisements made of paper, which are pasted on boards or handed out on the street.
Customized: To change something to make it more suitable for you, or to make it look special or unusual.
Phlebitis: A swollen condition of the vein, often occurring in the legs and involving the formation of a thrombus.
PR tool: Public relation tool
Anticoagulant: A substance that the clotting of blood.
Contraindications: To make a ban, indicating the possible danger of a drug, treatment, etc.
Impetuous: Tending to do things very quickly, without thinking carefully first.
Junkie: Someone who takes dangerous drugs and is dependent on them.
Crotch:In humans, the crotch is the bottom of the pelvis, the region of the bodywhere the legs join the torso.
Pastor: A Christian priest in some protestant churches.
Pilgrim: The group of English people who arrived to settle in America in 1620.
Antibiotics: A drug that is used to kill bacteria and cure infections.
Barbaric: Like very cruel, violent and primitive people.
Humiliate: Make someone feel ashamed and upset, especially by making them seem stupid.
Hilarious: Extremely funny and cheerful.
Diddle: fondle or touch sexually.
Pitch-black: Completely dark.
Phrases
Pain in the ass: Thing that bothers you very much, but it's hard or inappropriate to put them on the table to talk about because of the bother-maker's identity.
Curl someone’s hair: To frighten or shock someone then make his hair curl.
Carry sb. away: To make people so excited that even losing self-control.
Wean sb. off: Gradually stop doing some things that used to do formerly.
I heart you: When saying the phrase 'i heart you' it means that you actually love the person but do not feel comfortable saying that straightly. It’s just a little less serious than actually saying 'I love you.'
Call sb. out: Indicate someone who is responsible for something bad.
If you can't do the time, don't record the crime. Not to do something risky unless you are willing and able to accept the full consequences.
Cultural Notes
John Mayer
An American singer-songwriter, also a notorious playboy.Taylor Swift wrote a song “Dear John” to insinuate their relationship after their break-up. John then responded with another song” Paper Doll.”
Dlisted
A celebrity gossip blog written by Michael K from January 23, 2005. Dlisted is known for covering the exploits of particular celebrities in detail, including Britney Spears, Madonna, Angelena Jolie, Lindsay Lohan's mother Dina Lohan.
Michael K responded to this episode the next day after broadcasting: ”And thanks to The New Normal for dropping Dlisted’s name on last night's episode. But I never said that Brazil needs its own One Direction. However, I may or may not be guilty of saying that Brazil needs its own Color Me Badd.” http://dlisted.com/ http://dlisted.com/2012/11/14/night-crumbs-1370983626/
One Direction
One Direction are an English-Irish based in London, consisting of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson.
Brazil needs One Direction
“Brazil needs One Direction” is a topic from twitter by One Direction’s Brazilian fans to petition for a 2012 tour and finally became a trending topic.
Jennifer Love Hewitt
An American actress, producer, author, television director and singer-songwriter. She was in the cast of Party of Five with Neve Campbell.
Google alert
Google Alerts is a content change detection and notification service, offered by Google. The service automatically notifies users when new content from news, web, blogs, video and/or discussion groups matches a set of search terms selected by the user and stored by the Google Alerts service.
Rating update( live +3 DVR)
This ratings arbiter is Nielsen Media Research, a service which measures viewership through methods ranging from live through live plus seven days, counting playback within a week of recording. Under the standard of live +3, the broadcasters and advertisers are agreeing to count viewers who watch a show live or within 3 days of its original appearance. http://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/tv-and-culture/dvr-viewings-tv-ratings1.html
Woodstock
The Woodstock Music & Art Fair, the Woodstock Festival, was a music festival billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's dairy farm in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969.
In the video they say that it smells like Woodstock every time the Bohemian girl walks out of her trailer. What do you think they smell?
Nipsey Russell Nipsey Russell was an American comedian, best known today for his appearances as a guest panelist on game shows from the 1960s through the 1990s. His appearances were distinguished in part by the short, humorous poems he would recite during the broadcast. These lyrics became so closely associated with Russell that others referred to him as "the poet laureate of television."
A short sampling of one Nipsey’s poem:
“The opposite of ‘pro’ is ‘con’ That fact is clearly seen If progress means move forward Then what does Congress mean?”
Rita Wilson An American actress, singer, and producer
Rachel Maddow
Rachel Maddow is an American television host hosting a nightly television show,The Rachel Maddow Show. She is the first openly gay anchor to host a major prime-time news program in the United States.
In the video Jane says, " If you follow Rachel Maddow, punch yourself in your hairy crotch." This implies lesbians don't try to look sexy, and therefore don't shave/wax their crotches.
Bret Easton Ellis An American novelist, screenwriter, and short story writer. The work he is most known for is his third novel, 1991's American Psycho,
which soon be adapted into a cult hit move.
Kelly McGillis An American actress. Her most famous roles were playing an Amish lady in Witness (1985) and a flight instructor in Top Gun (1986).
Helena Bonham Carter Helena Bonham Carter is an English actress.
Tonight we're gonna party like it's 1799.
A line with regard to the lyrics of the Prince song 1999( " Tonight we're gonna party like it's 1999.")
The New Normal
These days, families come in all forms - single dads, double moms, sperm donors, egg donors, one-night-stand donors... It's 2012 and anything goes. Bryan and David are a Los Angeles couple, and they have it all. Well, almost. With successful careers and a committed, loving partnership, there is one thing that this couple is missing: a baby. And just when they think the stars will never align, enter Goldie, an extraordinary young woman with a checkered past. A Midwestern waitress and single mother looking to escape her dead-end life and small-minded grandmother, Goldie decides to change everything and move to L.A. with her precocious eight-year-old daughter. Desperate and broke - but also fertile - Goldie quickly becomes the guys' surrogate and quite possibly the girl of their dreams. Surrogate mother, surrogate family.
Ryan Murphy serves as creator/executive producer and director along with creator/executive producer Ali Adler and executive producer Dante Di Loreto.
"The New Normal" is produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Ryan Murphy Productions.
“Unplugged” is things back to usual on The New Normal, returning with its glaring problems now in full force.
David, Bryan, Shania and Goldie come to the realization that they spend too much time looking at screens and decide to pretend like it is 1799 for the day.
In the end, Bryan and David decide they should try to go technology-free every once in a while for their child, but then seconds later are checking their phones and texting each other while in the same bed. The lesson learned? Nothing, except for maybe an even greater dependence on the technology the show spend half an hour pointing out is a distraction.
David is first seen watching a football game, when Bryan tells him that he wants to have a baby. At first David doesn't know if they're ready because they wont be a normal family, but after they see a bunch of abnormal families in the park, Bryan explains to David that they are "The New Normal". They then find a woman to be the egg donor, but get blackmailed by their surrogate, Melissa, who turns out not to be pregnant. They later decide to choose Goldie as their new surrogate and Bryan lets David be the biological father. As they go to implant the embryo in Goldie, David starts questioning his ability to be a father. However, Goldie re-assures him. In the end he and Bryan buy her a lawyer suit and wait to see if she's pregnant.
Goldie is a single mother who recently moved from Ohio to California with her daughter Shania. She had Shania when she was 15 and calls her "the best accident ever." Goldie wants to study to be a lawyer. She is doing the surrogacy for the money, which she plans to use to go to law school. As a baby, her mother ran away leaving her with her grandmother. She is 24 years old. Jane (Goldie's grandmother) had Goldie's mother when she was 16.
She tells her daughter about her dream about becoming a lawyer, but she doesn't have any money, so she decides to become a surrogate - she asks for a gay couple, because of what her grandmother said. She meets with Bryan and David and is immediately ready to do the operation.
Jane is the grandmother of Goldie and great-grandmother of Shania . It is found out in Pilot that her husband was secretly homosexual. She is offensive most notably towards African-Americans and Gays. She had Goldie's mother when she was 16. She is 56 years old in the series.
She is the uptight and slightly offensive grandmother of Goldie Clemmons. She follows her and her daughter to LA without their knowledge or permission.
Shania is the ten year-old daughter of Goldie.
Rocky is the assistant of Bryan Collins.
You can see the video here:
http://www.videoweed.es/file/609a691f1e90b (no subtitles)
http://www.fun698.com/vod-play-id-48313-sid-0-pid-9.html
http://www.nbc.com/the-new-normal/episode-guide/season-1/583549/unplugged/episode-108/646744/
Here is the official site:
http://www.nbc.com/the-new-normal/
You can find more information about The New Normal at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Normal_(TV_series)
Here is the transcript of the episode:
Vocabulary
Aggro: Aggro is probably originally derived from the English words "aggravation" or "aggression", means being enraged.
Reek: To have a really strong and unpleasant smell of something. Can often refer to body odor.
Crotch: In humans, the crotch is the bottom of the pelvis, the region of the bodywhere the legs join the torso.
Phrases
Pain in the ass: Thing that bothers you very much, but it's hard or inappropriate to put them on the table to talk about because of the bother-maker's identity.
Curl someone’s hair: To frighten or shock someone then make his hair curl.
Carry sb. away: To make people so excited that even losing self-control.
Wean sb. off: Gradually stop doing some things that used to do formerly.
I heart you: When saying the phrase 'i heart you' it means that you actually love the person but do not feel comfortable saying that straightly. It’s just a little less serious than actually saying 'I love you.'
Call sb. out: Indicate someone who is responsible for something bad.
If you can't do the time, don't record the crime. Not to do something risky unless you are willing and able to accept the full consequences.
Cultural Notes
An American singer-songwriter, also a notorious playboy.Taylor Swift wrote a song “Dear John” to insinuate their relationship after their break-up. John then responded with another song” Paper Doll.”
A celebrity gossip blog written by Michael K from January 23, 2005. Dlisted is known for covering the exploits of particular celebrities in detail, including Britney Spears, Madonna, Angelena Jolie, Lindsay Lohan's mother Dina Lohan.
Michael K responded to this episode the next day after broadcasting: ”And thanks to The New Normal for dropping Dlisted’s name on last night's episode. But I never said that Brazil needs its own One Direction. However, I may or may not be guilty of saying that Brazil needs its own Color Me Badd.”
http://dlisted.com/
http://dlisted.com/2012/11/14/night-crumbs-1370983626/
One Direction are an English-Irish based in London, consisting of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson.
“Brazil needs One Direction” is a topic from twitter by One Direction’s Brazilian fans to petition for a 2012 tour and finally became a trending topic.
An American actress, producer, author, television director and singer-songwriter. She was in the cast of Party of Five with Neve Campbell.
Google Alerts is a content change detection and notification service, offered by Google. The service automatically notifies users when new content from news, web, blogs, video and/or discussion groups matches a set of search terms selected by the user and stored by the Google Alerts service.
This ratings arbiter is Nielsen Media Research, a service which measures viewership through methods ranging from live through live plus seven days, counting playback within a week of recording. Under the standard of live +3, the broadcasters and advertisers are agreeing to count viewers who watch a show live or within 3 days of its original appearance.
http://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/tv-and-culture/dvr-viewings-tv-ratings1.html
The Woodstock Music & Art Fair, the Woodstock Festival, was a music festival billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's dairy farm in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969.
In the video they say that it smells like Woodstock every time the Bohemian girl walks out of her trailer. What do you think they smell?
Nipsey Russell was an American comedian, best known today for his appearances as a guest panelist on game shows from the 1960s through the 1990s. His appearances were distinguished in part by the short, humorous poems he would recite during the broadcast. These lyrics became so closely associated with Russell that others referred to him as "the poet laureate of television."
A short sampling of one Nipsey’s poem:
“The opposite of ‘pro’ is ‘con’
That fact is clearly seen
If progress means move forward
Then what does Congress mean?”
There is a youtube video of some Western African soldiers handing a monkey a loaded gun.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxYmm5yCJBg
"Africa" is a million-selling, Gold-certified single by rock band Toto.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTQbiNvZqaY
An American actress, singer, and producer
Rachel Maddow is an American television host hosting a nightly television show,The Rachel Maddow Show. She is the first openly gay anchor to host a major prime-time news program in the United States.
In the video Jane says, " If you follow Rachel Maddow, punch yourself in your hairy crotch." This implies lesbians don't try to look sexy, and therefore don't shave/wax their crotches.
An American novelist, screenwriter, and short story writer. The work he is most known for is his third novel, 1991's American Psycho,
which soon be adapted into a cult hit move.
An American actress. Her most famous roles were playing an Amish lady in Witness (1985) and a flight instructor in Top Gun (1986).
Helena Bonham Carter is an English actress.
Tonight we're gonna party like it's 1799.
A line with regard to the lyrics of the Prince song 1999( " Tonight we're gonna party like it's 1999.")
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3bvJDTVHKw
Founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. She is an American business magnate, writer, and television personality.
http://www.marthastewart.com/268218/rolled-candles?center=0&gallery=274304&slide=268218
A Canadian actress most famous for her role in the Scream movies, Wild Things, and the TV show, Party of Five.
A bundt cake is a cake that is baked in a bundt pan, shaping it into a distinctive ring shape.
48 hours mystery
48 Hours is an American documentary television series that airs on CBS. The series has been broadcast on the network since January 19, 1988.
Listening Activities
What does the use of names show about relationship between Jane and Bryan's assistant (Rocky)?
Does Bryan twit too much? How many times did he twit(he took out the phone and text on Twitter) in total?
Is virtual sex better than real sex? Please listen and write down the reasons.
Try to describe Martha Stewart's process for making candles. Please listen and write them down.
What are the effects of not having electricity according to the video? Please listen and write them down.
Discussion Question
1. Can you live without your phone? How long can you go mobile free?
2. Are you using smartphones? If you don't, will it make your life inconvenient?
3. Do you get alerts all the time?
4. Do you have a pavlovian response to alert signals?
5. Have you taken classes online? Have you learned anything online? What is your opinion about the experience?
6. In what way, who, and when will you write a proper thank you note?
7. In today's world, if you don't exist online, you don't exist. Agree or disagree? Talk about your opinion.
8. Will you add your parents into your online social network?
9. Do you use twitter? What conventions are here in Taiwan? How many followers are there?
10. Describe the dinner time of yours ti each other. What do you do at dinner?